Stamp or ticket vending machine.



H. D. BBER'I. STAMP OB. TIGKT VENDING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 20, 1909.

y Patented Get. 4, 1910.

5 SHEETS-SHEET l.

H. D. EBERT.

STAMP 0R TICKET VENDING MAGHINE.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 20, 1909.

Patented Oct. 4, 1910.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

H. D. EBERT.

STAMP 0R TICKET VENDING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 20, 1909.

Q/LSL Patented 0613.4,1910

5 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

H. D. EBERT.

STAMP 0R TICKET VBNDING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED JULY Z0, 1909.

Patented 0011.4,1910

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articles may be carried in the forni oft a HENRY D. EBERT,.oFBALDWINsvILLEQ MassAcHUsE'r'rs.

STAM 0R TICKE'J,` VNDING MACHINE.

avisar Specific-ation of Letters Patent.

Paten-ted Uct. d, 1910.

Application ledJuly 2Q, 1909.' SerialNo. 508,559.

To all whom 'it maycoacerri:

VBe it known that l, HENRY D. Eisnirr, citizen of the United States,residing at Baldwinsville, in the county of Worcester and State ofMassachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inStamp or Ticket Vending Machines, of

which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to an' apparatus for vending postage stamps,postal cards, tickets, or other articles capable of being arrangedwithin the apparatus in the t'orin ol a strip or ribbon, said articlesbeing sepaated by perforatiens or weakening lines in such a manner as-topermit the article to be torn from or broken away from the strip withwhich it is connected.

The object of the inventi` i is to provide a simple and etlicientapparatus of this character which will .feed one or more stamps, ticketsor other articles, upon the insertion ot' a certain prescribed coin orcoins, and the particular object vis to provide an apparatus which iscapable of adjustment for the use ot' any desired coin, or for the useot' a plurality of coins, and which Will remain inoperative until thecom or coins ot' the required dimension are inserted.

further object is to. provide a mechanism In which the stamps, ticketsor other gfolded" strip and be successively delivered as desired.

A still further object is to provide means whereby 'the coin opening maybe closed when the articles to be vended have been exha usted.`

Further advantages depend upon the par ticular arrangement of parts anddetails of constructioi'zi, as will be set forth in theaccompanying'-'specification and more particularly statedjinthe appendedclaims.

' For a full understanding of the invention and the merits thereof,`andto -acquire a knowledge of the detailsv of' construction, referenceto be -had to the -followingydescription and aceonipanying drawings, "inwhich:

Figure l is a side view of my vending machine, parts being in section;Fig. 2 is a like view i'roiiil the opposite side of the inachine; Fig. 3is a perspective enlarged detail showing the locking wheel and itsconnected parts; Fie'. -l is a 'fragmentary detail showing the meanswhereby the conducting chute is supported ou the standards; Fig. 5

' the radial.notches-11.

is a detail perspective view showing-'the Tshaped locking pin; Fig. 6 isavei'tical section through the case and `transverse t0 the section inFig. l, showing the position oit the various parts; Fig. 7 is-ahorizontal section; Fig. S is an enlarged fragmentary side elevation ofthe locking wheel and coniiected'parts; Fig. t) is a perspective viewot' the discharging rollers and their gearing; Fig. 10 is an inner faceview of the discharging rollers and the frame in which they are mounted;Fig. 1l is a perspective fragi'nentary view showing the coin chute andits coin-testii'ig inechanisinilfig. l2 is a perspective detail viewshowing the stop for preventing the introduction ot' coins when themachine is empty; Fig. 13 is a perspective detail of the stop detachedfrom its supporting mechanism; Fig. 14 is a fragmentary horizontalsection of the front wall of the case, showing a portion ol the coinchute and the stop; and, Fig. 15 is a detail perspective of the yokewhichsupports the discharging rollers.

Corresponding and like parts are referred to in the followingdescription and indicated in all the views of the drawings by the sainereference characters.

Referring to the drawings,"2 designates a v case within which themechanism and stamp compartment are supported. The exterior of the case,upon its front face, is provided with the coin opening 3 having the formof a vertical slot., the stamp delivery slot 4 and the actuating knob 5.

Mounted upon the floor of the case are the opposed standards (i of anydesired construction, having in their upper ends bearings for .a shaft7.. The upper end of one of the standards is provided with a transversebar 8 upon which is supported the opposed approximately triangularframes 9, the base bars of which extend across on a level with the uppere'nds of the standards (i. Mounted upon th'e end ot' the shaft 7 andlocated be` tween the opposed triangular frames 9 is the locking wheel'10 having in, its circumference The outer face of the wheel between thenotches is ground away so as to'forni a series oi teeth 12-having.

ratchet or cani-like faces.

Also mounted on f the shaft '7 at one side of the wheel 10 isfthe yratchet wheel 13', and upon the shaft 7 v"is" mounted thebifurcated hai"14. 'lhe rear end ot this bar is connected by a spi-ing 15 with thecross bar 16 on the-standard.' The iic ratchet wheel 13 is mountedbetween the bifurcated bar so that the bar straddles the ratchet wheel.Pivoted within the closed end of the bifurcated bar is the pawl 17 whichis pressed by the sp1'ingv18 into engagement with the ratchet wheel 13.The bifurcated bar is guided in its movement by a guide plate 19 mountedupon a cross bar 20 which is attached to the standards and projectsupward from the side thereof. This guide plate is cut away as at 21 soas to receive the bar 14 and to limit its movement as well as guide thebar in its travel and hold it from any lateral play. The extremity ofthe bar 14 is reduced as at 22, and attached thereto is a chain 23 whichextends downwardly and is attached to a small winding drum on a shaft25. This shaft is mounted in bearings on a bracket 26 and extends outthrough the front wall of the case and carries the knob 5. Thus, uponturning the knob 5, the drum 24 will be rotated and wind up the chain23I which will thus depress the bifurcated bar or lever 14, and this,through its pawl, will rotate the ratchet wheel 13, thus rotating the'shaft `7 Y and rotating the wheel 10, provided this wheel isunlocked bythe coin-operated mechanism, as will be later described.

Mounted upon the extremity of the shaft 7 is the gear wheel 27 whichgears with a pinion 28 on a shaft 29 which is carried in a verticalframe 30. This shaft carries upon it a ber roller 31. Also mounted inthe frame 30 and immediately beneath the roller 31 is the roller 32 on ashaft 33 which shaft carries the pinion 28 and is driven therefrom.Thus, upon a rotation of the gear wheel 27, the roller 31 will be turneddownward and outward, while the roller 32 willJ be turned upward andoutward. The stamp or strip to which the stamp is attached is drawn outby' the rotation of these rollers.

, In order to cause the rollers to grip the strip upon which the stamp.or other object is formed, I provide shiftable bearings for the lowerroller 32, which bearings, designated 35, are formed in a yoke 36. Thisyoke slides between the side pieces of the frame 30 and is preferablyformed with projecting lugs 37 which extend out into slots 38 in theside pieces. A bolt 39 projects down from the yoke 36 and passes througha cross bar 40. The lower end of the bolt is provided with a wing nut41, and a compression spring 42 is located between the cross bar and theyoke, so that the yoke is forced yieldingly upward, and thus the rollers3l and 32 will vengage the stamps or strip of tickets between them.

The carrier for thevstamps, tickets or other articles, is designated 43.It may lhave any desired shape. As shown, however, it comprises avertical receptacle, oblong in cross section, and having a curved upperend or cover 44 which is hinged to the body of the receptacle. It alsohas a hinged door 45 which closes the side of the receptacle. The upperend of the receptacle is formed with the outwardly extending lip 4Gwhose upper surface is inv alinement with the upper surface of adelivery plate 47 supported upon the frame 30. The cover 44 is providedwith the extension 48 forming the upper face of 'the delivery slot, orin other words, covering the, delivery plate 47 but Aspaced therefromsufhcieiitly to permit the passage of the strip of stamps or tickets tothe delivery rolls 31 and The stamps, tickets or other articles areintended to be placed within the receptacle 43 in a folded condition. Inthe illustration the receptacle is shown as of suiicient vdepth topermit the stamps to be folded,

three in each length or fold. The stamps or tickets are to be made in astrip of'any desired length and are to be folded asabove describedtogether Vwith a strip of waxed paper to keep the stamps from sticking.It will be obvious 'also that any number of strips might be foldedtogether and placed within the receptacle 43 so that two or more stampsmight be delivered upon one actuation of the machine. The reason forhaving the strip folded is that I find in practice that the folding ofthe strips avoids friction, and the cover of the stamp compartment orticket 'compartment is made half round for the same purpose and permitsthe free delivery yof the stamps and avoids the,y likelihood of theproectin folds of the stamps or tickets contacting w1th the top of thevreceptacle.

The locking means `for normally preventing the actuation of the machinewithout the previous deposit of a prescribed coin f' frames 9, thelocking arm being pivoted between said frames and immediately over thelocking wheel 10. The forward end of the locking arm 50 is provided withthe downwardly depending "ishaped locking bar 51, and the forward end ofthe arm 50 is weighted by a weight 52 which will act to throw down theforward end of the arm so that the bar 51 will extend` into the notchesl1 so that the wheel 10 is prevented from any rotation until the lockingarm has been operated to raise the bar from the notch. The rear end. ofthe locking arm 50 is provided at its extremity'with theV-shaped chute53. The rear end of the arm 'and the chute extends into the spacebetween two opposed' guides 54. A slot 55 located toward the lower endsof these guides and extending into the space between them, passes throul1 a partition 56 and opens adjacent to a\su1t able coin receptacle 57.

Each triangular frame 9, at its apex, is provided with the downwardlyextending the movable chute 53. The forward end of the chute63 hasupwardly and forwardly projecting-.wings 64., Attached to the forwardend of the chute 63 is the downwardly weight 76 and at the other carriesa later projecting plate 65 which at its lower end has the inwardlyturned lips 66 adapted to engage with the posts 61, thus permitting thechute 63 to be detached or to be raised or lowered and adjusted to suitthe movements of the movable chute 53 and properly receive the coinsfrom the coin-introducing chute 7 0.

The coin chute `70 comprises two opposed 1plates 71 and 7 2. The platev7 1 is solid, while the plate 72 is cut away to form a side opening 73.' A longitudinally extendingv bar 74 1s mounted between the plates 71and 72 immediately beneath the square opening 73 and forms a floortherefor so that coinsy `supported thereon will topple over throughtheopening 73 ,and will not actuate the machine.

Pivotally mounted on the inside face of lthe casing 2 isthe weighted arm75. This,

at one end is provided with the adjustable ally projecting plate 77..The plate 72 is slotted at its forward end to recelve the arm 75.Theprojecting plate 77 on the endl of the arm fills the 'space' betweenthe two plates 71 and 72. The weight 76 acts to raise the opposite endof the arm 75 so that its projecting portion 77 is supported 011 a levelwith the lower end of the coin slot 3 and onV a level with the bar, 74.The weight j '76 is adjusted so that it will be counterbalanced bylacoin of the proper denomination, but will not be counterbalanced by aliohter coin.` Thus, any lighter coin 'which is placed within thel slot3 will not depress the plate 77 but will be guided thereby tothe bar 74and will topple out of the opening 73. A coin of the proper weight,Ihowever, will depress the arm 7 5, and the coin will be lowered to .suchposition that it will reach the runway 78 formed at the lower edgesofthe plates 71 and 7 2. Mounted in the extremity of this runway is themagnet 79. The outer end of-the chute 63 is spaced from the chute asulicient distancel so that a slug orother 'metallic blank attractedbythe ma net 79 will drop downward between the c ute 70.

and the guiding chute 63. j A genuine coin,

however, as for instance a nickel or a cent,.

will. acquire sufficient .momentum in rolling down the chute 70 so thatit will jump the gap between the inner end of the chute 70 and the outerend of the chute 63 and thus will be guided down into the chute 53.

It is of course necessar in devices of this kind to provide means orpreventing any attempt at actuating the vending a paratus when thecommodity to bevendedh exhausted. To this end, I provide a spindle 80pivoted in bearings on the inside of the a's been caslng adjacent1 tothe coin slot 3. L This spindle -hasprojecting from it and into` thecoin slot a T-shaped arm 81, vProjecting opl positelyfrom thespindleand-into the casing is. the arm 82. Against this arm operates a sprin8,3 which acts tojnormally turn the spind e upon its bearings so thatthe T- shaped portion 81'will be shifted into 'a recess formed in theside of the coin slot so that it will be out of the way of lthecoin wheninserted. Connected to the extremity of the arm 82 is a cord 84 .whichpasses over an eye or pulley 85, then extends to an eye or pulley 86upon the rear wallof the case yand then depends downwardly through aneye V87. The lower end of thecord, after passing through the eye 87, isconducted into the stamp compartment 43,' and the end of the cord isattached to a blank stam or blank ticket attached to the last one-ot thestamps or tickets contained within the stamp or ticket receptacle.Attached to the cor v84 is a Weight 88 having a link -89 at its u lperend. A pin projects out from t e rear wall of thc case upon'which theweight 'is adapted to be hung. The weight, vwhen so hung, upon the pin,is entirely clear of the bottom of the case.

The operation of this ortion of my inven-l Vshen the last stamp,

tion will be evident. ticket or other article has'been vended, the cord84 will be vpulled suiciently to draw' the weight S8 ofi' from the pinf90. The weight will thus fall, and through the cord 84 will retractthearm 8,2, thus throwing the T-sha ed bar 81 outward and blocking thecoin s ot, thus reventing the insertion of a `coin. vWhen t e stampreceptacle isl once Amore lilled, it is'only-necessary yto lift theweight 88 and hang it once more upon the pinof course previouslyattaching the end of the cord to the blank at the extremity of the stripof stamps or tickets.

As a. means of preventing thelifting ofthe locking arm 50 suiciently topermit the actuation of the wheel 10 until a coin or j coins oflsuflcient weight have beenfdeposited, 'I provide th'e rear end of thelocking 4arm with the projecting screw-threaded rod 91 upon which isscrewed the adjustable Weight 92. By ladjusting); this weight upon thescrew-threaded rod, the locking arm may be very delicatelycounterbalanced so that it will only tip Vor fall upon the deposit of acoin rof the properqweight or of a plurality of coins which togethermake up the proper weight. As a further means to this end and preventingthe fall of the locking arm to its iinal position until the deposit ofthe second coin (where a plurality of coins are required), I provide thepivoted counterbalanced supporting arm 93. This, at its outer extremity,is provided with a. hook 94 adapted to engage with the locking arm whenthe latter is depressed to a proper degree. rl `he middle of the arm 93is pivoted upon a bearing formed on one of the frames 9, and the rearend of the arm is provided with the weight 95. A pin 96 normallyprojects over the frame 9 to support the weight.

The ,operation of my invention is as follows: The parts being in theirlocked position and the stamp or ticket receptacle being filled withfolded tickets or stamps, a coin is deposited in the coin slot.` If itis a coin of the required dimension, it will pass through the coin slotand will be shot into. the guiding chute 63 from which it will bedelivered into the movable. chutef 53. If the coin is of s uilicientweight, it will counterbalance the locking arm, and the outer end of thelocking arm will descend. As it descends to the full extent, theT-shaped locking bar 5l will be raised partially out of the notch in thewheel 10. As soon as the locking bar has been raised sufiiciently fromthe notch, the knob 5 may be rotated. This will draw down upon the chain23 operating the stepby-step ratchet wheel which will rotate the shaft 7to a definite extent, or until the next notch in the wheel 10 isreached. As the' shaft rotates, the rollers 31 and 32 will be rotated,drawing out one or a lurality of tickets from the receptacle and)delivering them at the delivery slot 4 where they may be torn 'olf fromthe body of the strip. The rotation of the shaft 7 rotates the wheel l0,and the curved faces of the teeth l2 willv act to lift the locking bar5l so as to permit the easy rotation of the wheel. When the next notchis reached, of course the locking bar drops into it, for by this timethe movable chute has reached the slot 60 and the coin has dropped outinto the coin receptacle.

I do not wish to be limited to the use of a casing or box for inclosingthe stamps or u tickets to be sold, as it will be obvious that I mightuse a reel or other device upon which the strip of stamps ismounted andfrom which it may be drawn off. ,I prefer, how.- ever, the form of stampor ticket receptacle shown, as I believe that there is less frictionincident to its use than there is wherel a reel is used. 'Y

I do not wish to be limited to the details of the coin-receiving andtesting portion of my device above described, as it is obvious jiatother mechanism may be used for reeiving the coin and testing it.

My apparatus is simple, cannot easily get out of order, will onlyoperate upon the deposit of a required` coin, and may be adapted for usewith one coin or a plurality, as required.

Having thus described the invention, whatV jacent to the ratchet wheel,a pawl mountedl on the arm, engaging with the ratchet wheel, a handleexterior to the case, a connection between ysaid handle and the arm, alocking wheel mounted on the shaft and having a series of radialnotches, acounterbalanced lever pivoted adjacent to the circumference ofthe wheel, a locking bar carried by the lever, engageable in any one ofthe notches, a chute-like receptacle adapted to receive a coin carriedon the end of the lever, and a guide in which the outer end of thereceptacle moves, the lower port-ion of said guide being provided with acoin-receiving slot with which said receptacle will register when thelocking lever is moved to its lowest position. Y

2. In a vending mechanism, a case, a shaft mounted' therein, meanswhereby articles may be vended upon a rotation of the shaft through adefinite distance, a handle on the exterior of the case, mechanismwhereby an actuation of the handle shall cause a definite rotation ofthe shaft, a locking wheel on the shaft having a' series of radialnotches, a counterbalanced locking lever pivoted adj acent to the wheeland having a locking bar entering the notches, a 'coin-receivingchutelike receptacle carried on the end of the lever, and a guide inwhich said receptacle moves, closing the end of the receptacle, and acoin-receiving slot at the lower end of the guide with which saidreceptacle registers when the lever has been `moved to its lowestposition.

3. I In a vending mechanism, a case, a shaft mounted therein,article-discharging mechanism connected to the shaft to be operated upona rotation thereof, a handle exterior to the case, mechanism actuated bythe handle whereby the shaft may be rotated a certain definite distance,a locking wheel on the shaft having a series of radial notches, acounter'balanced locking lever'pivoted ad.- j'acent to the wheel, acoin-receiving chutelike receptacle carried on the outer end of thelocking lever, a guide in which said receptacleA moves and closing theopen end thereof, said guide having a coin-receiving slot at its lowerend with which the receptacle willregister when the locking lever ismoved to its lowest position, a rod pivoted adjacent to the lockinglever, one end of v said .rod being so formed as to be engaged by thelocking lever as it moves downward, the other end of the rod beingprovided with a counterweight, and a stop for preventing the unweightedend of the rod from engaging with the locking lever when the latter isin its uppermost position.

4. In a vending mechanism, a shaft, discharging mechanism connected tothe shaft to be actuated upona rotation of the shaft, a handle,mechanism engaged by the handle for rotating the shaft in one directionto a definite distance, a locking wheel on the shaft having a series ofradial notches, the teeth formed between'said notches having inclinedfaces, a locking lever pivoted adjacent to the shaft, a locking barcarried by the lever and intersecting with the notches, a receptacle` onthe end of the locking lever adapted to receive a coin to counterbalancethe locking lever to depress the same to raise the locking bar from thenotches and permit the actuation of the machine, and means whereby thecoin may be discharged from the receptacle.

5. In a vending mechanism, a rotatable shaft, discharging mechanismconnected to the shaft to be turned upon a rotation thereof, a handleexterior to the case, mechanism connecting the handle with the shaft,whereby the latter shall be rotated by an actuation of the handle, alocking wheel having a series of radial notches, a frame located on eachside of the locking wheel and having notches adapted to coincide withthe notches in the wheel, a counterbalanced locking lever pivoted insaid frame, a transversely extending locking bar on the lever,engageable in any one.- of the notches, a chute-like receptacle on theouter end of the lever, and a guide in which said receptacle moves, saidguide having at its lower end a coin slot with which the receptacle isadapted to register when the lever has been moved to its lowestposition.

6. A vending mechanism for articles on strips,including a case, a shaftmounted therein, a gear wheel on the shaft, discharging mechanismoperated from said gear wheel, a handle exterior to the case, mechanismwhereby the shaft may be rotated a definite distance upon the actuation0f the handle, a locking wheel on the shaft having a series of radialnotches, a pivoted locking lever having a bar engaging with any one ofthe notches in the wheel, a chute-like receptacle on the outer end ofsaid receptacle, a coin-receiving chute', and an intermediate chutemounted between the coin-receiving chute and the chute-like receptacleand spaced from the former whereby a coin may with the device, a supportfor the weight' so arranged that when the weight is supported thereon,said cord shall be slack, and means connectingl the weight with the lastend of the strip, whereby the weight may be pulled from its support andallowed to fall upon a movement of the last end of the strip.

8. 'In a vending mechanism for articles on strips, an outer casinghaving a coin slot, an inner receptacle for said articles having adelivery mouth, a bar normally held away from but adapted to be movedinto a position to close the coin slot, a weight, a cord connecting theweight with the bar, a projecting support for the weight on which theweight is adapted to be hung and so located that the cord from theweight to the said bar shall be slack, and a cord extending from theweight into said article receptacle and-there attached to the last endof thestrip, whereby when said last end of the strip is moved, theweight will be drawn from engagement with the support and allowed tofall, therebymoving the said bar into the coin slot.

9. In a vending'machine, an outer casing, a rotatable shaft, dischargingmechanism connected to the shaft, a ratchet wheel on the shaft, an armprojecting from the shaft and radially mounted thereon, a pawl on thearm engaging with the ratchet wheel, a radial handle mounted exterior ofthe casing and extending into the same, a winding drum actuated by thehandle, a liexible connection from the winding drum to saidpawl-carrying arm, counterbalanced locking mechanism normally preventingthe rotation of the shaft, and means whereby, upon the deposit of acoin, said locking mechanism shall be operated to permit the rotation ofthe shaft.

HENRY D. EBERT. [n s] Witnesses: p

GEORGE F. BALooM, CHAS. A. PERLY.

